Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination
against Women
Twenty-fourth session
15 January-2 February 2001

Provisional agenda

1. Opening of the session.

2. Solemn declaration by the new members of the Committee.

3. Election of officers.

4. Adoption of the agenda and organization of work.

5. Report of the Chairperson on activities undertaken between the twenty-third and
twenty-fourth sessions of the Committee.

6. Consideration of the reports submitted by States parties under article 18 of the
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.

7. Implementation of article 21 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of
Discrimination against Women.

8. Ways and means of expediting the work of the Committee.

9. Provisional agenda for the twenty-fifth session.

10. Adoption of the report of the Committee on its twenty-fourth session.

Annotations

Item 1. Opening of the session

The twenty-fourth session of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination
against Women will be opened by the representative of the Secretary-General.

Item 2. Solemn declaration by the new members of the Committee

According to rule 10 of the rules of procedure of the Committee, new members of the
Committee shall make the solemn declaration contained in that rule.

Item 3. Election of officers

The Committee shall elect a Chairperson, three Vice-Chairpersons and a Rapporteur
for a term of two years, according to rules 13 and 14 of its rules of procedure and
article 19 of the Convention. The term of the officers elected by the Committee at its
twenty-fourth session, on 15 January 2001, will expire 31 December 2002. Under rule 43,
paragraph 1, of the rules of procedure, if there is an agreed slate, the candidates may be
elected by acclamation, without the holding of a secret ballot.

Item 4. Adoption of the agenda and organization of work

Rule 7 of the rules of procedure provides that the agenda shall be adopted by the
Committee at the beginning of its meetings. Rule 5 provides that the provisional agenda
for each session shall be prepared by the Secretary-General in consultation with the
Chairperson, in conformity with the relevant provisions of articles 17 to 22 of the
Convention, giving priority to items the inclusion of which was decided at a previous
session of the Committee.

At its twenty-third session the Committee approved the provisional agenda for its
twenty-fourth session.

The Committee has, since its sixth session, set up two standing working groups, namely
Working Group I, to consider and suggest ways and means of expediting the work of the
Committee, and Working Group II, to consider ways and means of implementing article 21 of
the Convention. At its seventh session, the Committee decided to keep the membership of
the working groups flexible. At its eleventh session, the Committee decided that the
working groups should be open only to members of the Committee, in accordance with past
practice. Specialized agencies and other bodies of the United Nations that could make
substantive contributions to questions under consideration could be invited by the working
group to contribute to its deliberations. The proposed organization of work for the
session is shown in the annex to the present document.

Documentation

Provisional agenda and annotations (CEDAW/C/2001/I/1)

Item 5. Report of the Chairperson on activities undertaken between the twenty-third
and twenty-fourth sessions of the Committee

Under this item the Chairperson will brief the Committee on activities and events
occurring since the previous session that had a bearing on the Committees work.

Item 6. Consideration of reports submitted by States parties under article 18 of the
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discriminations against Women

Article 18 of the Convention provides that States parties to the Convention shall
undertake to submit to the Secretary-General, for consideration by the Committee, a report
on the legislative, judicial, administrative or other measures which they have adopted to
give effect to the provisions of the Convention and other progress made in this respect.
Reports are to be submitted within one year after the entry into force of the Convention
for the State concerned and thereafter at least every four years and further whenever the
Committee requests.

At its twenty-third session, the Committee, taking into account the criteria of
preference to be given to those States parties whose reports had been pending for the
longest time, the need to give priority to initial reports and the desirability of balance
of reports in terms of geographic and other factors, decided to invite eight States
parties to present their reports. Eight States parties agreed to this request.

At its twenty-fourth session, the Committee will have before it the following reports:
the initial report of Burundi (CEDAW/C/BDI/1), the initial report of Kazakhstan
(CEDAW/C/KAZ/1), the initial report of Maldives (CEDAW/C/MDV/1), the initial report of
Uzbekistan (CEDAW/C/UZB/1), the third and combined fourth and fifth periodic reports of
Egypt (CEDAW/C/EGY/3 and CEDAW/C/EGY/4-5), the third and fourth periodic reports of
Finland (CEDAW/C/FIN/3 and CEDAW/C/FIN/4), the combined third and fourth periodic reports
of Mongolia (CEDAW/C/MNG/3-4) and the combined second, third and fourth periodic reports
of Jamaica (CEDAW/C/JAM/2-4).

Rule 49 of the rules of procedure provides that representatives of a State party shall
be present at meetings of the Committee when the report of the State is being examined and
shall participate in discussions and answer questions concerning the reports. The
Secretary-General has informed the States parties concerned of the tentative dates on
which their reports are scheduled for consideration by the Committee at its twenty-fourth
session.

Rule 47 of the rules of procedure provides that at each session the Secretary-General
shall notify the Committee of non-receipt of any report required from a State party under
article 18 of the Convention. The Secretary-General also provides the Committee with a
list of reports submitted by States parties to the Convention that have not yet been
considered by the Committee. The Committee at its twenty-fourth session will have before
it the report of the Secretary-General on the status of the submission of the reports by
States parties under article 18 of the Convention (CEDAW/C/2001/I/2).

The Committee decided at its ninth session that a pre-session working group should be
convened before each session to prepare a list of issues and questions relating to
periodic reports for transmission to the representatives of States parties before the
meetings at which their reports were to be considered. At its nineteenth session, the
Committee decided that the pre-session working group would meet at the end of the session
prior to which second and subsequent reports would be considered. The pre-session working
group for the twenty-fourth session met in New York from 3-7 July 2000. The report of the
pre-session working group and the responses of States parties to the list of issues and
questions drawn up by the pre-session working group will be before the Committee.

Documentation

Initial report of Burundi (CEDAW/C/BDI/1)

Initial report of Kazakhstan (CEDAW/C/KAZ/1)

Initial report of Maldives (CEDAW/C/MDV/1)

Initial report of Uzbekistan (CEDAW/C/UZB/1)

Third and combined fourth and fifth periodic reports of Egypt (CEDAW/C/EGY/3 and
CEDAW/C/EGY/4-5)

Third and fourth periodic reports of Finland (CEDAW/C/FIN/3 and CEDAW/C/FIN/4)

Combined third and fourth periodic reports of Mongolia (CEDAW/C/MNG/3-4)

Item 7. Implementation of article 21 of the Convention on the Elimination of All
Forms of Discrimination against Women

Article 21 of the Convention provides that the Committee may make suggestions and
general recommendations based on the examination of the reports and information received
from States parties. It also provides that such suggestions and general recommendations
shall be included in the report of the Committee together with comments, if any, from
States parties. Rule 48 of the rules of procedure provides that those suggestions and
general recommendations shall be communicated by the Committee, through the
Secretary-General, to the States parties for their comments.

At its tenth session, the Committee decided to provide, under the agenda item entitled
"Implementation of article 21 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of
Discrimination against Women", opportunities for specialists from the specialized
agencies and other United Nations bodies to present to the Committee in plenary
information related to specific articles of the Convention or to issues being considered
for general recommendations and suggestions.

At the same session, the Committee decided to select and review specific articles and
other issues to be considered at subsequent sessions as a long-term programme, without
prejudice to any changes that might be necessary as a result of new developments and
priorities arising from the review of the reports of States parties.

Article 22 of the Convention provides that the specialized agencies shall be entitled
to be represented during the consideration of the implementation of such provisions of the
Convention as fall within the scope of their activities and that the Committee may invite
the specialized agencies to submit reports on the implementation of the Convention in
those areas. The Committee at its twenty-fourth session will have before it a note by the
Secretary-General on reports of specialized agencies on that subject (CEDAW/C/2001/I/3 and
addenda).

Documentation

Note by the Secretary-General on reports of specialized agencies on the
implementation of the Convention in areas falling within the scope of their activities
(CEDAW/C/2001/I/3)

Report of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
(CEDAW/C/2001/I/3/Add.1)

Report of the World Health Organization (CEDAW/C/2001/I/3/Add.2)

Report of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
(CEDAW/C/2001/I/3/Add.3)

Report of the International Labour Organization (CEDAW/C/2001/I/3/Add.4)

Item 8. Ways and means of expediting the work of the Committee

At its twelfth session, the Committee decided that the Secretariat should prepare
every year, as a pre-session document, a report on ways and means of improving the work of
the Committee containing information provided by the Secretariat, comments made by members
of the Committee or developments elsewhere in the human rights regime. In view of the fact
that the Committee has been authorized to hold two sessions annually, the Secretariat has
decided to provide the Committee with a report on ways and means at each session
(CEDAW/C/2001/I/4)

At its twenty-third session, the Committee decided to adopt the revised rules of
procedure contained in document CEDAW/C/2000/II/WG.1/WP.I as to substance but, subject to
editing, the rules of procedure would be adopted in final form at the twenty-fourth
session.

The Committee has also met in an expert meeting to consider its proposed draft rules of
procedure with regard to the Optional Protocol to the Convention which entered into force
on 22 December 2000. The proposed draft rules of procedure will be annexed to the report
on ways and means (CEDAW/C/2001/I/4).

Documentation

Report of the Secretariat on ways and means of improving the work of the Committee
(CEDAW/C/2001/I/4)

Item 9. Provisional agenda for the twenty-fifth session

At its tenth session, the Committee decided that the draft provisional agenda for
the following session of the Committee would be approved at the end of each session.

Documentation

Draft provisional agenda for the twenty-fifth session of the Committee.

Item 10. Adoption of the report of the Committee on its twenty-fourth session

Annex

Proposed organization of work

Date/time

Agenda item

Documentation/programme

Monday, 15 January 2001

486th meeting

10.00 a.m.

Item 1

Opening of the session

Item 2

Solemn declaration by the new members of the Committee

Item 3

Election of officers

Item 4

Adoption of the agenda and organization of work

Item 5

Report of the Chairperson on activities undertaken
between the twenty-third and twenty-fourth sessions of the Committee

Item 7

Implementation of article 21 of the Convention on the
Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women: introductory statement

Item 8

Ways and means of expediting the work of the Committee:
introductory statement

3.00 p.m. (closed)

Items 7 and 8 (continued)

Working Group of the Whole: composition of Working Groups
I and II and issues for discussion

Tuesday, 16 January 2001

10.00-11.30 a.m. (closed)

Informational meeting with United Nations bodies and
specialized agencies

11.30-1.00 p.m. (closed)

Items 7 and 8 (continued)

Working Group of the Whole

3.00-4.30 p.m.

Informal meeting with non-governmental organizations

4.30-6.00 p.m. (closed)

Item 7 (continued)

Open discussion on general recommendation 25

Wednesday, 17 January 2001

487th meeting

10.00-10.30 a.m. (closed)

Item 6

Consideration of reports submitted by States parties
under article 18 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination
against Women

Burundi, initial report (CEDAW/C/BDI/1)

10.30-11.30 a.m.

Introduction by State partys representative

11.30 a.m.-1.00 p.m.

Questions by experts and dialogue with the Committee

488th meeting

3.00 p.m.

Item 6 (continued)

Burundi (continued)

(closed)

Items 7 and 8 (continued)

Working Group of the Whole

Thursday, 18 January 2001

489th meeting

10.00-10.30 a.m. (closed)

Item 6 (continued)

Kazakhstan, initial report (CEDAW/C/KAZ/1)

10.30-11.30 a.m.

Introduction by State partys representative

11.30 a.m.-1.00 p.m.

Questions by experts and dialogue with the Committee

490th meeting

3.00 p.m.

Item 6 (continued)

Kazakhstan (continued)

(closed)

Items 7 and 8 (continued)

Working Group of the Whole

Friday, 19 January 2001

491st meeting

10.00-10.30 a.m. (closed)

Item 6 (continued)

Egypt, third and combined fourth and fifth periodic
reports (CEDAW/C/EGY/3 and CEDAW/C/EGY/4-5)

10.30-11.15 a.m.

Introduction by State partys representative

11.15 a.m.-1.00 p.m.

Questions by experts and dialogue with the Committee

492nd meeting

3.00 p.m.

Item 6 (continued)

Egypt (continued)

(closed)

Items 7 and 8 (continued)

Working Group of the Whole

Monday, 22 January 2001

493rd meeting

10.00-10.30 a.m. (closed)

Item 6 (continued)

Finland, third and fourth periodic reports (CEDAW/C/FIN/3
and CEDAW/C/FIN/4)